iPhone 4S: Worth the Upgrade?

Well, there is always next year for the iPhone 5, right? Right. Despite the rumor mill churning up some juicy stuff — some believable, some not so much about an iPhone 5, larger screen, and even Sprint exclusivity the iPhone launch has come and gone and what were we left with this year? An iPhone 4S. The release of the iPhone 4S has left some with a bittersweet taste in their mouth, while others are still in disbelief over the release. Many consumers and investors (including myself) were expecting a newly designed shell and a larger screen to be included with the new iPhone, but instead, both were missing from the release. Leading me to the question — were our expectations too high?

Apple has been on a roll recently, soaring stock price, sales through the roof, and awesome brand equity. It is everybody’s favorite consumer products company. If there’s one thing Apple does well it is selling its products. It does this so well because Apple knows how to market to everyone, but it is also because the company is so meticulous in its approach to everything. Everything has to be perfectly crafted and executed. There are no half-baked releases at Apple.

Which leads me to my main point. If Apple had perfected a way to have those additional features incorporated into the new iPhone and keep the cost the same — they would have. The last thing Apple wants to do is upset its customer base. After all, they have been rated number one in customer satisfaction — something which they like to talk about a lot. Will we see those rumored features included in the iPhone at some point? I’d venture to say yes.

While I do expect a larger screen, a newly designed shell, and NFC support to be implemented into the iPhone, I cannot say when exactly we will see it, because the answer to when is: when it’s ready.

That being said, after my initial disappointment with the announcement of the iPhone 4S, it is definitely still an improvement to the iPhone 4. The same way the iPhone 3GS was an improvement to the iPhone 3G. Many of us, myself included, thought our iPhone 3G was plenty fast — that is until, we got our hands on the 3GS. The point being, an upgrade is an upgrade.

Now of course the question comes down to: should you upgrade to the iPhone 4S? My answer to that would be if you’re eligible for an upgrade then I think it would be a good move. If you are not eligible (as is the case with me) then perhaps you will want to hold off until you are or if your eligibility doesn’t come up until closer to June 2012 the best thing to do may be to wait. In my particular case, I’m not eligible for an upgrade until after November 25th 2011, so I plan to wait and reassess upgrading depending on the rumor mill at the time.